At the What Men Want screening in Dallas Tuesday night, singer/actress Erykah Badu (who attended the screening and plays a psychic in the film) proclaimed that all men really want is to be left alone and a sandwich. I think most of us can agree with this. However, fellow critic (and our nerd leader) Marcus Blake also added that men need a little loving (I grossly paraphrase what he said). Yes, men want that too, but the filmmakers had to make this movie longer than what can be summed up in one clipped sentences.

What Men Want is like a spiritual sequel to the 2000 Mel Gibson film What Women Want, because it’s not really a sequel or a remake. It’s more like a comedic counter exploration. The truth is, expectations were low. But the film is surprisingly fun and the characters make this a decent movie.

Taraji P. Henson (Empire) is Ali Davis, an ambitions ball-busting woman who works in a sports talent agency. The agency is, of course, run by mostly men.  She’s got it all figured out, but hits a roadblock when she does not get the promotion. Yeah, glass ceiling and all that jazz. But that doesn’t keep her down. She vows to sign the biggest fish, a young up-and-coming basketball player Jamal Barry (Shane Paul McGhie). The key being figuring out what kind of deal Jamal’s father Joe (Tracy Morgan) will be satisfied with.

Ali has no idea how to deal with the men in her life, including her mousy gay assistant Brandon (Josh Brener) and the hot bartender Will (Aldis Hodge) whom she has a one night stand with. But the situation changes after a night of bachelorette partying with her besties. It mirrors What Women Want in that has an accident and now she can hear what men are thinking. She uses this to her advantage to finally land her dream job and bust that glass ceiling to bits.

This film is coming out after a year of the Me Too movement, making the subject relevant. It shows men being afraid to verbalize what they are really thinking. What was once casual water cooler talk is no longer acceptable banter. Even the most innocent comment could be misconstrued. The culture is changing, and society is putting on its glasses trying to figure out where that line is. So is this movie. 

However, this movie didn’t make me hate men. I think for those of us who are tired of the constant news bombardment on the subject of gender inequality, this movie gives us permission to laugh. And that’s what comedy is folks.

The strength of What Men Want is two things, the first being the solid female cast, led by Henson. Henson is charismatic, jaw-droopingly gorgeous and has serious comedic chops. I actually didn’t mind that her character Ali is a total jerk. In one scene she actually makes a comment that if she were a man, she’d be celebrated for her toughness.

All of the female characters far outshine everyone else. But the one who takes the cake in hilarity is Badu who plays the psychic hairdresser Sister. Badu mentioned at the screening that she was allowed to use her improve skills and she blatantly steals all her scenes. In fact, I really hope they do a spinoff movie called Sister because I will be all about that. Who knew that the mystical and spiritual Badu is a comedic genius? All the girlfriend scenes are hilarious, especially Wendi McLendon-Covey (The Goldbergs) who plays the religious (wink, wink) friend Olivia.

The other strength is the lines that cut to the quick. The movie went through about 10 writers, but sassy jokes are clever and original. I’m not going to give any spoilers, but there is a Get Out joke that left me rolling.

Unfortunately, there are some problems with the movie. It’s ridiculously predictable and pretty much all of the male actors are unimpressive. Tracy Morgan is annoying as the basketball dad, Ali has to court. It’s strange because the dialogue is good, but the story itself is bathed in tired clichés. I think I have it figured out. You know how some films that are about, and starring, women fall short because a woman didn’t write the script? I think this is kind of the same thing. Although this film had a room full of writers, no one really was able to materialize what men really want, except for the obvious. The ending was pretty much, oh yeah, this is what they want. The end. And it’s not that genuine.

But perhaps the part I disliked the most is that in order to get the job, Ali had to change. Initially she does all the right things to get the promotion. If she was unsatisfied, she could have looked for  a new job. I’m sure with her CV there would have attracted a ton of agencies willing to give her a chance. But she gets her ‘power’ and that pretty makes her a worse person. So her old self wasn’t good enough and her new self isn’t either. I think the message needs some fine tuning.

In conclusion, this movie is fun at its surface and acceptable to watch with your friends. But I probably wouldn’t rush to see it in the theater.